he's done his tax reform. and maybe he could go for another kind of entitlement reform. but they're hoping here that that if he does immigration, that would break the narrative that he is entrenched in this sort of swirl of ineptitude and controversy and put him on a solid footing again. we just had a report from the congressional budget office that the deficit is shrinking-- growing less rammedly. so better news. so maybe sunnier days on the horizon is their hope. >> rose: explain to me, as all these controversies, as you say, al, not scandals, controversies swirl, where are they in terms of the white house and the congress on the budget and what are the expectations for some kind of grand bargain and how are they going to deal with the sequestration and the debt ceiling? >> i think they're somewhere between slim and absolutely none. i think there's no movement. i think the republicans will capitulate on the debt. but i don't think we'll have any kind of a deal, and as jessica said a moment ago, the fact that the deficit is coming down brings even less pressure on eithe